Bend & Break (Love at First Sight Book 5) Read online

  Which was why I was so fucking shocked when he pulled down our driveway and I saw a massive dumpster filled with what appeared to be shingles.

  “Is that—Is that our roof? You had the roof replaced while I was gone?” I asked incredulously. He didn’t reply and I narrowed my eyes at him. “What else did you do?”

  “You’ll see.”

  “I hate that answer. Try again.”

  It was worse than I expected. When the house came into full view, I could clearly see that not only had the roof been changed, it had been reshaped in the back. I didn’t have a good enough angle to survey the damage entirely, but I could see enough.

  I covered my eyes and whined, “Mason. Please, please tell me you didn’t fuck with my dream house without even talking to me about it first.”

  He sighed, disappointed with my reaction.

  “Get out of the car, Layla.”

  “No!”

  “Baby, please come inside and take a look before you get mad at me. If you hate it, I’ll gladly take whatever punishment you want to dish out.”

  The car door closed and I heard him dragging my bag out of the trunk. I either had to follow him inside to see the damage or sit in my car by myself and sulk.

  I hated both options.

  Ultimately, the need to pee made the choice for me. I reluctantly went into the house and ducked into the bathroom for a minute before wandering upstairs where I found Mason waiting in the hall.

  “Show me what you did.”

  “Wow. Could you sound any less excited?”

  “Could I be any less excited?”

  I felt shitty when I saw how hurt Mason was by my attitude. He gave me the saddest look I’d ever seen on him—worse than any expression he wore back when he couldn’t find a job in New York—and I held up my hands to stop him from leading me anywhere until I apologized.

  “I’m really sorry, Mason. I’m just so exhausted. I’m not trying to be a huge bitch.”

  Though he was clearly still hurt, he shook his head and interrupted, “You’re not a bitch, Layla.”

  I ignored him and continued. “It’s just… You know I wanted to do renovations myself and since I never told you what I intended to do, I’m terrified that whatever you did is going to conflict with my plans. I don’t want to end up hurting you if I want to change something you worked hard on.”

  “Don’t make it sound like I did it myself,” Mason said with a chuckle. “I paid professional contractors to build something I designed—but if you want to change anything, you’re more than welcome to. I promise not to be offended.”

  “Wait... what? How did you—”

  “Remember when I said there was a buyer interested in the house in New York? Well, the sale went through. I’m not rolling in cash, but it was more than enough to do this.”

  I was hesitant to ask, but I did. “Do what, exactly?”

  “Come see.”

  I followed him down the hall to the last set of stairs that led up to the attic. Despite him saying that he didn’t mind me making changes later on, I was still terrified of hurting his feelings. When we got to the small landing at the top, he said, “Wait.”

  My eyes were loosely covered with his hand and I sighed when I heard the door open before he gently started walking me forward. I closed my eyes and used those few precious seconds to prepare myself for what I was about to see. His hand fell away, but I was too afraid to look.

  “Open your eyes, beautiful.”

  I cracked one open—catching a glimpse of his face and beyond—and it was more than enough to make me open them both wide. My jaw dropped and I inhaled deeply as I looked around the attic in awe.

  “Holy crap.”

  “I thought you’d like a place to work,” Mason said, his voice laced with nerves. “As for the roof—I thought you’d appreciate a view for inspiration.”

  He trailed off and turned me to the side, bringing my attention to the wall of glass doors that led out to a newly constructed balcony.

  “You made me a studio?” I asked breathlessly. “Oh my God—you made me my own studio and I freaked out on you. I’m so—”

  “Shhh,” he hushed, covering my lips with his finger. “We’ve been living together for a while now and I’m well aware that you’re kind of a control freak. I was prepared for this reaction.”

  “You knew I’d be a bitch and you did this anyway,” I said in disbelief, shaking my head as I continued to look around in wonder. “You’re an incredible man.”

  “You like it?”

  “I love it!”

  Mason clapped his hands together, a pleased and slightly smug smile tugging at his lips. He jerked his chin toward the doors that led to the balcony and I didn’t even wait for him to speak before I rushed over to them.

  As I stepped out into the slightly crisp Florida air and listened to the waves crashing against the shore, I was at peace.

  Home.

  “Layla?”

  My eyes cracked open and I turned to see Mason standing far to my left beside an easel. I squealed in excitement and rushed over, tears swimming in my eyes when I noticed the table beside it stocked with paints and brushes.

  I inspected the different jars waiting for me, my excitement growing with every new detail. I wondered if Mason would be willing to sit still long enough to let me paint a portrait of him. A form like his deserved to be immortalized.

  The man in question was still lingering somewhere behind me and when he called my name again, it took a hell of a lot of effort for me to turn away from my new art supplies to see what he wanted. I frowned when I turned my neck and didn’t see him—my entire body seizing in shock when I realized why.

  Mason was kneeling. No, it wasn’t even that. He had gone down to bended knee and there was absolutely no mistaking the reason for his stance.

  Especially not after he produced a ring box from behind his back and held it up to me in offering.

  I realized my mouth was hanging open when he smirked and said, “You look surprised.”

  It hit me like a load of bricks. I recalled when we first arrived in Florida and made the bet. I also remembered my intention to add a reminder of our six-month anniversary to my cell phone. The memories started getting fuzzy after that and I knew it had something to do with Ethan appearing in the doorway of the guest room with a bottle of vodka and a wicked grin.

  We ended up at some ridiculous club that night in the VIP lounge where Ethan ordered bottle service. I felt like I was on top of the world.

  At least until the next morning when I woke up with the hangover to end all hangovers and vowed never to drink again. That promise only lasted until I managed to forget about how sick I had gotten, but the damage was done.

  I completely forgot to make the note.

  “Shit,” I muttered, closing my eyes when Mason grinned. “Damn it.”

  “Do all women look so upset about being proposed to? I wouldn’t know—this is my first time.”

  I gave him a scathing look, but I couldn’t stop the smile from forming on my lips as I said, “You know that’s not why I’m upset.”

  “So may I proceed?”

  I took a moment to pretend to think about it before I nodded and quietly said, “You may.”

  Mason smiled and looked up at me with pure adoration in his almost pleading eyes. In that moment, I forgot all about the bet I just lost.

  “I love you, Layla. More than words could ever express,” he said before he flipped open both sides of the box. “Will you be mine forever?”

  His question was pretty much lost on me as I stared in awe at the ring, the diamonds glistening in the fading sunlight. I had been terrified of him picking a ring that didn’t suit me—it was the sole reason I made the bet in the first place—but holy fuck. Mason did me proud.

  The main diamond was stupidly big to the point that I imagined Ava and Charlie would balk at the mere thought of wearing it. The two diamonds beside it weren’t exactly small either and there were ti
ny ones embedded in the band. I couldn’t tell if they went all the way around, but I didn’t care.

  It was an over-the-top ring—exactly what I wanted—and even more beautiful than the one I had imagined in my mind. I couldn’t figure out how Mason would have afforded it until I thought about my new studio.

  “Wait a minute. Did you… You spent all the money from selling your house on this, didn’t you? On the studio and the ring.”

  Mason shrugged. “When we discussed selling it you told me not to bother giving you any of the money to make up for buying this place for us. I wanted to give it back to you somehow.”

  “That’s…” I trailed off and rubbed at my eyes, trying to stop myself from crying. “Thank you.”

  He shifted around on his knee and gave me a hesitant smile. “Do you like the ring? I know how worried you were.”

  “God, yes. I love it,” I told him honestly as I reached for it, only to end up frowning as he jerked it away.

  “You haven’t given me an answer.”

  “Oh shit. I’m sorry!” I exclaimed with a laugh. I was thankful to realize the itch behind my eyes had subsided and I gave him a firm nod. “Yes, I’ll marry you. I’m yours—forever.”

  The ring was slid on my finger while the two of us wore a set of matching smiles. He raised to full height and kissed me, murmuring against my lips.

  “I love you.”

  “I love you, too,” I breathlessly whispered. I held my hand up to inspect the ring closer, letting out a happy sigh as it sparkled. “It’s so perfect.”

  I felt a gentle kiss being placed on the top of my head and Mason held me there for a long moment, the two of us basking in the last light of the day as the sun fell below the horizon.

  As the sky began to darken, Mason whispered, “Baby?”

  “Hmm?”

  “I do believe I won the bet.”

  I pulled back to look up into his eyes, not at all surprised when I found them darkened with desire.

  “I guess you did.”

  His fingers wove into my hair and tipped my head back. I moaned as he slowly trailed his lips up my neck until they hovered just over my lips.

  “Clock starts now.”

  He sealed his words with a kiss and I succumbed to him without hesitation. He might have been referring to the twenty-four hours of the bet—but all I could think of was the clock starting on the lifetime we had ahead of us.

  That thought was more breathtaking than any ring could have ever been.

  The End

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